Thill-coupling attachment.



P. M. FOOTE & O. H. SCHABINGER.

THILL COUPLING ATTACHMENT.

APPLICATION-FILED JAN. 7, 1911. RENEWED NOV. 25, 1911.

1,023,106. Patented Apr. 9, 1912.

COLUMBIA PLANOGRAPH 110.. wAsmNu'l'oN. D. c.

STAENT FRANK M. FOOTE AND CHARLES H. SCI-IABINGER, OF MARSHALL,MICHIGAN, ASSIG-NOBS TO FOO'lE AXLE COMPANY, OF MARSHALL, MICHIGAN.

THILL-GOUPLING- ATTACHMENT.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed. Ilanuary 7, 1911, Serial No. 601,456. RenewedNovember 25, 1911. Serial No. 662,466.

To all whom "it may concern:

Be it known that we, FRANK M. Foo'rn and CHARLES H. SOI-IABINGER,citizens of the United States, residing at Marshall, in the county ofCalhoun and State of Michigan, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Thill-Coupling Attachments, of which the following is aspecification.

This invention relates to improvements in attachments for thillcouplings to prevent rattling between the parts, and has for one of itsobjects to simplify and improve the construction and increase theefliciency and utility of devices of this character.

Another object of the invention is to produoe a simply constructeddevice which may be applied without material structural changes to thillcouplings of various forms and sizes and which may be readily attachedto and disconnected from the thill coupling without the necessity ofemploying addl- I tional tools or implements.

Another object of the invention is the production of a device of thischaracter which will hold the shackle pin locked in the clip regardlessof the position of the anti-rattler device, and which will require theoperating lever of the anti-rattler device to be disposed in an unusualposition to release the shackle p With these and other objects in viewthe invention consists in certain novel features of construction ashereinafter shown and described and then specifically pointed out in theclaims, and in the drawings illustrative of the preferred embodiment ofthe invention Figure 1 is a side elevation of a conventional thillcoupling with the improvement applied, with the axle in transversesection; Fig. 2 is a plan view of the parts shown in Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is asection on the line 33 of Fig. 2; Fig. 4 is a detail view illustratingthe arrangement of the parts when the locking lever and cams are inreleased position.

Corresponding and like parts are referred to in the followingdescription and indicated in all the views of the drawings by the samereference characters.

The improved device may be applied without structural changes to thillcouplings of various forms and sizes, and for the purpose ofillustration is shown applied to a conventional thill coupling of theordinary construction, in which 10 represents the body which bears overthe axle, represented at 11, and provided with bolts 13 which engagethrough the coupling plate 14: and are provided with spaced arms 1516between which the thill iron or shackle 17 engages and held in place bythe pin 18, these parts being of the usual construction except that thepin 18 is provided with an enlarged head 19 at one end and taperedslightly at the other end, as shown at 20, to facilitate the entering ofthe pin.

The improved attachment comprises a bar 21 having cam devices 22-28spaced apart thereon and with an operating handle or lever 24 at oneend. The lever 24: is located at the side nearest to the enlarged head19 of the pin 18 and is provided with a projecting lip 25 at one sideand a similar lip 30 from the other side, the lip 25 being designed toextend over the enlarged head of the pin when the lever is in its closedposition, and the lip 30 to extend over the head 19 when the lever is inits released position to lock the pin in the clip, as hereinafterexplained. The bar 21 is designed to extend over the arms 15-16 next tothe body 10 of the clip with the cam members 2223 bearing upon the upperfaces of the arms, and engaging over the bar 21 between the cam devices2223 is a hooked upper portion 26 of a resilient plate 27 the latterextending downwardly between the arms 15 16 and likewise between thehead portion of the shackle 17 and the clip plate 14. The plate 27 isextended a considerable distance below the arms 15-16 and is bentforwardly and thence upwardly, as shown at 28, and with its terminalcurved, as shown at 29, to correspond with and bear against the underface of the head of the shackle. The plate 27 with its hooked terminal26 and curved terminal 29 is so proportioned that when the lever arm 24and the cam device 23 are turned into their upper position the head 19of the pin 18 will be released and the strain removed from the member27, so that the pin 18 may be detached to release the shackle. When,however, the lever is turned into its downward position the cam devices2223 will be caused to bear upon the upper faces of the arms 1516 andexert a strong upward pull upon the member 27 and cause the curvedterminal 29 to engage tightly against the head of the shackle 17,

and at the same time dispose the lip 25 over the end 19 of the pin 18and thus lock the latter in position.

It will be noted that the cam devices 2223 are each formed with a fiatside which engages against the arms 1516 and thus prevents accidentaldisplacement of the cams when in use. By this arrangement when the lever24 is disposed in its downward position the lip 25 engages over the head19 of the pin 18, as shown in Fig. 1, and then when the lever is in itsupward or partly released position, the other lip 30 engages over thehead of the pin, as shown in Fig. 4:. Thus the pin is locked in positionwhether the lever be in operative or released position. Thus in event ofthe accidental displacement of' the lever from any cause the pin 18would not be released. It will be obvious that, the pin can be releasedonly by moving the lever 24 upward beyond the usual or natural positionwhich it would occupy when released. This is an important feature ofapplicants device and materially increases its efficiency and utility.

The bar 251, cams 22-23 and lever 2d and its lips 2530 are constructedfrom a single casting, preferably of steel or malleable iron, while theplate 27 with its terminals 26 and 29 is likewise formed from a singlepiece, but of steel suitably tempered to enable it to withstand thestrains to. which it will be subjected, and to retain the necessary gripand pressure against the shackle.

It is obvious that a simply constructed anti-rattler attachment isproduced which may be adapted without material structural changes to. athill clip, and without the necessity for employing wrenches, screwdrivers, pincers, or other implements.

bear over one end of the shackle pin of the thill coupling when thelever is disposed in closed position, and another lip on the leveradapted to bear over a shackle pin when the lever is disposed in partlyreleased position and fully releasable only when the lever is moved intoan unusual position.

2. The combination with a thill coupling including spaced shackle arms,of a pin extending through said arms and enlarged at one end, a thillshackle having a head located between said'shackle arms. and rotativeupon said pin, a bar having cams spaced apart and engaging upon saidshackle arms, a resilient member Inovably engaging said bar at one endand with a seat at the other end for hearing against the head of thethill shackle, a lever arm extending from said bar, a lip upon saidlever arm and extending over the ellarged end of the shackle pin whenthe lever is disposed in closed. position, and another lip on the leveradapted to bear over a shackle pin when the lever is disposed in partlyreleased position and fully releasable only when the lever is movedinto. an unusual position.

In testimony whereof, we aflix our signatures in presence of twowitnesses.

FRANK M; FooTE. [L..s.] CHARLES. soHARiNsER.

Witnesses:

FRANK J. GRorr, COULTON C. VARY.

Copies of this patent, may be, obtained for five cents each, byaddressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. (3.

